More foreign films in theatres

Published: Wednesday, May 10, 2006, 11:40 [IST]

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Wednesday, May 10, 2006 Mumbai (UNI): In an effort to treat audience with more foreign films on silver screen than just English movies, Palador Pictures has tied-up with Inox and Cinemax multiplexes to show about 200 foreign flicks to movie buffs. Palador Pictures managing director Gautam Shiknis told mediapersons here today that under the tie-up with the two multiplexes - named Reeload, the first series of films, including Chinese, French, Italian and in various other foreign languages, will be released in July across Mumbai for select community viewing, before a wider release.

At present, not a single theatre in India screens good films made by globally renowned filmmakers like Kristoff Kieslowski, Akira Kurosawa or David Lynch on a consistent basis, Shiknis lamented. For this, Reeload would screen foreign films of diverse nature and production for Indian audience, on a experimental basis for two years, he said and added that he expects the market for foreign films in India to cross Rs 100 crore by 2008.

Cinemax managing director Hiral Kanakia said the growth of multiplexes can be attributed to the increasing import of foreign films, and Reeload will bring critically acclaimed world-class movies to Indian audience. Inox vice president (marketing) Shrikant Hazare also expressed hope that the audience would enjoy diverse foreign films, to be screened in their multiplexes in Mumbai and Pune.

On the occasion, noted director-producer Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra of Rang de Basanti' fame said, ''I feel it will take some time before one can see a commerical foreign release on a day-to-day basis.'' To a poser, Mehra also said Palador is trying to form a movie library to make a good collection of world's greatest and acclaimed movies.